In Jennifer Granholm, the state's one-term attorney general, Democrats finally found a candidate strong enough to wrest the governor's mansion back after 12 years of Republican control. Ms. Granholm is also the first woman to be elected governor of the state.

The race was controlled from the outset by Mrs. Granholm, a Harvard Law School graduate with broad-based voter appeal, particularly among working women, African-Americans and voters under 30.

Her opponent, Lt. Gov. Dick Posthumus, hoped voters would focus on his record and Republican assertions that Ms. Granholm, 43, was secretly making patronage promises to politicians in Detroit in exchange for the support of the area's large black voting base. Mr. Posthumus, a Michigan native, also sought to paint Ms. Granholm as an outsider because she was born and raised in Canada.

But voters appeared to be captivated by Ms. Granholm's record on crime and her savvy, personal campaign style.